"That really will be a major opportunity to get the aged care system that we're going to need for the next decade and beyond," he said.

"We are certainly saying to the decision makers that you will need to take action this time, we can't have another report that just gathers dust on the shelf, we're actually going to have to fix some of these problems because they aren't going to go away."

The report is due out in April next year.

Demographer Bernard Salt has told the conference demand for aged care services in Australia will not peak until 2020, when Australia's 4.5 million retiring baby boomers require more services.

But he says they will not be content with the level of care their budget-conscious parents had.

"This is the 'me-generation', they will actually demand significant services into retirement," he said.

"The baby boomers [are] the first generation of retirees who'll be educated, opinionated and articulate, if something's not up to scratch baby boomers will let you know about it, so the expectation of quality of life, services and facilities will lift.

"Over the next 20 years, let's say, we're going to need double the number of beds we have now, so we're going to need another 200,000 just to cope with the increase in demand."

Mr Salt is also predicting a widespread skills shortage and a significant impact on the economy as the baby boomers head into retirement.

He says the onus will be on generations X and Y to support the ageing population by paying more tax.

Poverty wages

Sue Lines from the Miscellaneous Workers Union says the real crisis is the sector's 25 per cent staff turnover rate due to low wages.

"What the union wants to see is some serious consideration given by employers to supporting aged care workers earning a professional wage, to move them off the poverty wages they're getting now," she said.

Cook-off

Meanwhile, celebrity cook and Senior Australian of the Year Maggie Beer will host a MasterChef-style cook-off in Hobart today.

As part of the conference, three aged care chefs will take centre stage to challenge the stereotype that food served in aged care homes is unappetising.

Mr Munday says there is an important message behind the event.

"It's both a bit of fun but also to underline the real importance of good nutrition for the health of older people," he said.

"One of the themes of the conference is about how do we support older people to have healthy and self-directed and satisfying lives, and food is incredibly important in that."